POOL9 - March 2011

March 2011 | # 09 Indian edition

Supported by

Bringing together the communities of Design and Technology

Classics and Thoroughbreds

Translating design into social responsibility, Tsunamika

Raman Saxena 04

Adil Darukhanawala 08

Upasana 24

India’s First International Design Magazine D E S I G N • I N N OVAT I O N • C R E AT I V I T Y

0 Rising Star kalyani Ganapathy 10

Innovations Giha Woo 12

Bookworm Gunjan Ahlawat 14

Anuj Sharma

Maestros Smruti Swarup Puhan 30

photographed for POOL by Hiren Rana

Campus

Events

Point of View

Young Talent

Raffles Design Institute 16

Connecting Concepts 18

Roopal Kewalya 26

Nameeta Sohoni 28

Advisors Some of the planet’s foremost thinkers and influencers act as a sounding board and conscience for the POOL magazine.

Design Focus!!

Kigge Hevid CEO, Index Awards, Denmark

Abhijit Bansod Studio ABD, India

Kishor Singh Business Editor, India

Adil Darukhanawala Editor, Economic Times, Zigwheels, India

Kohei Nishiyama Founder, Elephant Design, Japan

Dr. Inyoung Albert Choi Professor, Hanyang University, Korea

Madhukar Kamath Managing Director and CEO, Mudra Group, India

Anaezi Modu Rebrand, USA

M P Ranjan Professor, NID, India

Prof. Anil Sinha Head, Visual Communications, NID, India

Prasoon Pandey Corcoise Films, India

Anna Muoio Principal, Social Innovation, Continuum, US

Rajesh Kejriwal Kyoorius Exchange, India

Anuj Sharma Designer, India

Rodney Fitch CEO, Fitch, UK

Aradhana Goel Designer / Strategist, Ideo, USA

Shilpa Das Head, Publications, NID, India

Craig Branigan Chairperson, Landor, CEO, B to D Group, USA

Dr Soumitra R Pathare Psychiatrist, India

Christopher Charles Benninger Architect, Studio CCBA, India

Shrikant Nivasarkar Founder, Nivasarkar Consultants, India

David Berman David Berman Communications, Canada

Subrata Bhowmik Subrata Bhowmik Design, India

Deepika Jindal Managing Director, Artdinox, India

Sudhir Sharma Designindia, India

Essam Abu Awad MIDAS, Jordan

Suresh Venkat CNBC, India

Hrridaysh Deshpande Innoastra, India

Uday Dandawate Sonicrim, USA

Jos Oberdof NPK Design, Netherland

Umesh Shukla Auryn, LA, USA

Julia Chiu Executive Director, JIDPO, Japan

William Drentell Winterhouse, USA

Kieu Pham Haki Brand, Vietnam

William Herald Wong WHW Design, Malaysia

Photographed by Kunal Khadse/ET-Zigwheels

Is it possible to transform culture by designing processes and services? Is it possible to transform a culture of widespread corruption in government? Is it possible to have reforms without addressing corruption?

I often wonder about the role design can play in controlling the unabated spread of corruption in our daily lives. Corruption is so commonplace that most large scale projects and government decisions factor corruption as standard practice into planning stages.

Everyday on TV we now hear of the corruption at the highest levels, being very aware that it exists on every level and it exists within those who talk against it in those very programs.

I hope some enlightened designers and institutions can set out to explore the role design can and should play to change attitudes, culture and expectations. Design is one of the few professions that is led by passion and will hopefully remain outside the touch of corruption, designers as such then make ideal vehicles to look at a system and redesign it to work... without corruption.

That is where the new design associations need to focus, and perhaps create an image of driven professionals with a zeal to create corruption free practices. The design industry is buzzing with activity on every front now..there is movement on the education front, there are better economy boosting practices, the government is becoming active and individuals have started gathering; it is the right time to get a focus.

Sudhir Sharma Editor in Chief sudhir@indidesign.in

Editor in Chief Sudhir Sharma sudhir@indidesign.in

Art & Design Pradeep Goswami, Prashant Agashe, Shraddha Trivedi

Executive Editor Gina Krishnan gina@poolmagazine.in

Illustrator Santosh Waragade

Copy Editor Ashvina Vakil Editorial Coordinator Sonalee Tomar sonalee@poolmagazine.in Research & Design Coordinator Preethi Bayya Layout & Production Pradeep Arora Subscription & Logistics Seema Sharma subscribe@poolmagazine.in Finance Kuldeep Harit

Assistants Anil Burte, Yamanappa Dodamani Publisher INDI Design Pvt Ltd www.indidesign.in Address India India House, 53, Sopan Baug, Balewadi, Pune - 411045, India Phone: +91 20 6510 6407 www.poolmagazine.in

DESIGN INDIA

March 2011 | # 09 Indian Edition

Designindia was founded in 2002. It was started as a platform for interaction for the design community in India and abroad.

Over the years it has grown into a forum spread over many social and professional networking domains, linking design professionals into an active, interactive and thought leading community. http://in.groups.yahoo.com/group/designindia

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Headlines Icograda President joins Faculty of Design at Swinburne University of Technology

challenging problems than ever before, research is a key factor in professional excellence. As President of Icograda, Russell is a global spokesman for the design profession.

As a researcher, he is leading the way in professional development.”

Establishment of ADI Association of Designers of India has been established as a society In the month of January 2011 as the first nodal body for professional designers. This body is envisioned as the apex body looking into the wider interests of professional design practice

After 17 years with Monash University, Russell has enthusiastically accepted the research fellow position at Swinburne where he will also undertake a PhD candidature. His research focus will be in the area of design advocacy and government policy. Russell says, “Swinburne’s commitment to design research and leadership is outstanding.

The Faculty of Design is endowed with remarkable research talent from Australia and around the world. I’m looking forward to working for Swinburne, a University that clearly understands design research and the vital role design plays in improving every aspect of society.”

Icograda President Russell Kennedy has been appointed as an adjunct research fellow with the Faculty of Design at Swinburne University of Technology. Swinburne, a member of the Icograda Education Network (IEN) since 2003, is a highly respected design school based in Melbourne, Australia.

A graduate of Swinburne, Russell brings a wealth of experience to his appointment there. His background is in both communication design and filmmaking.

Prior to joining Swinburne University, Russell was a Senior Lecturer of Visual Communication at Monash University. He has been a director of Russell Kennedy Design Pty Ltd, a corporate identity consultancy, and Onset Productions Pty Ltd, a motion picture and documentary company. Russell was elected to the Executive Board of Icograda as Vice President in 2003 and became President in 2009.

Russel also has a host of other achievements to his name. He is a Fellow of London’s Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufacture and Commerce (RSA); and an active member and advisor to both the Australian Graphic Design Association (AGDA) and the Design Institute of Australia (DIA).

He is also a member of several international advisory boards.

Ken Friedman, Dean of the Faculty of Design at Swinburne said, “We’re delighted to have Russell here for two important reasons. At a time when business and the public sector call on designers to solve larger and more

Icsid announces theme for World Industrial Design Day 2011 In celebration of the fourth annual World Industrial Design Day on 29 June 2011, the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (Icsid) invites designers and design enthusiasts from around the globe to spread awareness and initiate events reflecting this year’s theme: Industrial Design: How does it improve your life?

The theme was chosen to gain the public’s perspective on how industrial design impacts their daily lives. Icsid aims to start a public conversation that will showcase and bring awareness to the crucial and ever-present work being achieved by industrial designers throughout the world.

The World Industrial Design Day is also an important date for Icsid and the international design community due to it being the public launch of the inaugural World Design Impact Prize. On 29 June, every design project nominated for the Prize will be unveiled in an online gallery at www.icsid.org for the public to view, discuss and share.

Icsid will also be organising the World Industrial Design Day student poster competition for the third consecutive year, Open to any student attending an Icsid Member educational institution, the winning poster design will be distributed and showcased worldwide as the official face of the celebrations. Icsid has decided to reinstitute public online voting to determine the winner – this will take place from 10-27 May 2011 at www.icsid.org .

in India. It aims to plug the long standing demand and gap of having an integrating organization which stitches together the concerns of professional design practice by Indians as well as creates an interface with the Industry. The association was formely launched by the president of India Design Council Mr. Anand Mahindra in presence of Mr. Sundar and other Council member in Mumbai.

Early bird savings of 60% on International Design Alliance (IDA) Congress registration A 60% discounted rate of Approx. USD $295 / EUR €220 is being offered until 31 March 2011 on the inaugural International Design Alliance (IDA) Congress to be held from 24-26 October 2011 at the Taipei International Convention Center (TICC) Limited tickets for this unique gathering of thought leaders are available on a first come, first served basis for students at Approx.

USD $225/ EUR €165.

Details http://www.2011idacongress.com

content@poolmagazine.in

@nikhilchinapa 14 year-old suicide bombers. If God does exist, He’s obviously working on a slightly less ambitious project than humankind. www.poolmagazine.in 3

Inception

Universal, Sustainable, Inclusive Design...

On the eve of the fifth anniversary of the USID Foundation, founder Raman Saxena traces the journey of a forum dedicated to making design and technology more accessible to the end user A non profit forum initiated in 2006, USID Foundation India brings together the design and technology community including professionals, students, and academicians.

It seeks to spread the knowledge, research and practice in these domains and helps make the technology usable and accessible by the end user irrespective of their abilities, education, and socio-economic conditions.

Even though USID Foundation India was initiated with a focus on Human Computer Interaction and User Experience, in the last few years it has evolved into Universal, Sustainable, Inclusive Design focusing on design as a critical tool that can be leveraged to extend the reach of technology to the masses, and effectively enable the socio-economic development of people and society irrespective of geographical locations, urban or

USID Gurukul is inspired by the ‘Gurukul’ concept of ancient times. It aims to provide students from the varied fields of design, technology, management and social sciences an experience of collaborative and immersive learning through working on existing social problems...

rural, and individual’s socio-economic conditions and physical limitations.

USID Foundation is also engaged in research and education activities to create awareness of design and how design and technology can help in socio-economic development especially among the rural and economically weaker population through research initiatives like ecosystem exploration of rural India.

The forum has more than a thousand members and is engaged in a number of activities. Apart from an annual three-day international conference, USID Foundation India also organizes many other events including Design Challenges, Call for Paper, Startup Showcase, Academic Showcase, Gurukul, Design Appreciation workshops, etc.

Since 2009, USID Foundation has introduced cultural performances in its events with the intention of creating awareness about social issues as well as traditional performing arts. The closing ceremony of the USID2009 conference featured a performance by Ability Foundation, a Delhi based NGO that trains people with disabilities in traditional and contemporary dance. A Kathakali dance performance was organized as part of the closing ceremony of the USID2010 conference. The performances were highly appreciated and created lots of awareness about the abilities and talent of people with disabilities.

Representatives from a variety of industries, organizations, and research and educational institutions attend USID events. The events are supported by the industry and professional organizations including CA, Forum Nokia, Microsoft Research, Intuit, Microsoft, Yahoo India, Google India, SMI, UserLabAsia, and Design Programme IIT Kanpur.

USID Conferences Held in Hyderabad, USID2007 was India’s first ever three-day conference in the User Experience and Design domain. The conference was organized on the theme ‘Living in a Digital World: Challenges for the Designers and Engineers’. The theme of the USID2008 conference in Bangalore was ‘Design Innovation & User Experience: Transforming Businesses in the New Economies’.

The theme of USID2009, also held in Bangalore, was ‘Design for All: Usability, Accessibility & Creativity’. USID2010 was held in Hyderabad and its theme was ‘Designing Consumer Experience for the Emerging Markets and Beyond’. Bill Buxton, Principal Researcher - Microsoft Research, and Prof. M.P. Ranjan of NID were the keynote speakers.

One of the leading such events in India, the USID annual conference is attended by more than 175 participants representing 50 or more organizations, and features more than 50 speakers from international companies, academic institutions, and research organizations.

USID Gurukul USID Gurukul is inspired by the ‘Gurukul’ concept of ancient times. It aims to

provide students from the varied fields of design, technology, management and social sciences an experience of collaborative and immersive learning through working on existing social problems under the mentorship of accomplished practitioners, researchers, academicians and professionals which would then facilitate social-economic development and better quality of life.

USID Gurukul 2010 brought together 48 students (shishyas) and 16 mentors (gurus) representing 16 institutions and organizations including NIDs, IITs, IIM, Delhi School of Economics, Amity University, iDiscoveri, IMRB, and Alto University, Finland. The teams worked on problem

areas related to education, health and care, environmental issues, rural and craft sector, public policies and its impact on citizens, and aged population and generation gap.

Ecosystem Exploration of Rural India The Ecosystem Exploration of Rural India was a research journey undertaken to understand the rural ecosystem.

It was focused on identifying the touch points where design and technology can intervene to alleviate the quality of life in rural India.

The exploration was conducted in two phases covering 3,900 kilometers by road in seven states including Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra,

Andhra Pradesh, UP, Uttaranchal and Haryana. More than a hundred interviews (ethnographic research and contextual enquiry format) were conducted with various subjects to identify touch points in the eco-system where design and technology could intervene.

Conservation of Nature and Wildlife Growing urbanization and deforestation are leading to large scale destruction of nature and wildlife across the globe.

USID Foundation strongly believes that creative professionals can do a lot to bring about positive change in this direction. The Foundation’s new initiative ‘Designers & Artists for the Conservation of Nature and Wildlife’ focuses on how

design and creative skills can help spread awareness, and be leveraged to save endangered species and prevent loss of the world’s green heritage.

The initiative includes activities such as design challenges for creative professionals and students to create awareness about the conservation of nature and wildlife; design and art camps; and exhibitions and seminars on how design can be leveraged for the conservation of nature.

Design Challenges and Other Activities USID Foundation has conducted various innovative competitions over the years such as a competition to design an

email system for old people with no Internet experience, or one to design an easy to use mobile application that can help in agriculture productivity and socio economic development of the rural population. The design challenges received a very good response from students as well as professionals.

Other events organized by USID include ‘Academic Showcase’ to bring student academic projects to the community; ‘Start-up Showcase’ to demonstrate Design and UX innovation to the community and business; ‘Design & Technology Mixer’; and design awareness and discovery workshops for schools kids.

Five Years and Counting USID Foundation will be celebrating its fifth anniversary from April 2011 to March 2012. The following events have been planned for the occasion: • Design Conclave and JAMs focusing on ‘Tomorrow’, where each of these events will focus on one area such as ‘Healthcare’, ‘Education’, ‘Villages’, ‘Environment’, and so on.

• ‘Women in Design’ event to highlight contribution of women designers as design leaders and entrepreneurs.

• Design Film Festival of documentaries and short films focusing on design thinking, practice and social cause. www.usidfoundation.org

In short, this is a book for anyone, who loves cars and bikes, especially those which shaped history, made our heart beats quicker and also made us lust after them for mare reasons than one.

It is also thankfully something which we hope is a work in progress, this being the first of an annual series. This first edition of Classics & Thoroughbreds has been a labour of love for me and I just cannot wait to get started with volume 2 due midway in 2011. I sincerely hope you will enjoy reading it and just as important, use this as a reference source in your motoring library. adiljal@gmail.com

Adil Jal Darukhanawala

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Rising Star

Give her a hand!

Kalyani Ganapathy of Bangalore based design studio Kye paints stories and recreates them on objects or accessories of utility value. She studied advertising and graphic design before working as a print designer for more than four years, but finds that she is more suited to turning her hand to quirky designs that translate so fetchingly into everyday items of use such as bags and home furnishings.

Tell us more about Kye. In Karnataka, ‘kye’ means hand. It’s a rather quirky name, and it’s certainly the shortest word that captures everything we stand for, and everything we do. We paint stories, incidents, dreams, sounds, sights, just about anything and make them into objects for use. Though our work comes from no particular school of art, every piece of art is handmade, unique and done by a single hand.

What inspires your work?

I love observing people, events, and objects, so you’ll often find me doing that. I let the power of my imagination take over and that’s when people and simple objects become part of a larger fantasy story that is being woven in my head. My work is largely a reflection of my emotional state, life experiences and an imagination I allow to grow wild. In fact, one of the things I still love to do is stare at clouds and find dragons, airplanes and other things in their shapes.

How did you decide to work with fabric?

I discovered this by accident. There was a point when I was sick of spending my day in front of a screen, and I wanted

an outlet for my creativity. That’s when I started weaving stories, and took it up as a challenge to tell them in a pictorial form; cloth was the medium I chose because it was economical and abundant. After I was done painting I did not want to have my art framed, that was when I thought it would look spectacular as pieces of home furnishing and bags.

What are your personal favorites in terms of color, weaves, prints and fibers?

I follow my instinct when it comes to color. I used to favor neutral backgrounds, but I am now learning to work with colored fabrics as well. One of the key things I keep in mind is that people buy furnishings based on how great the color looks, whether they match the curtains and the rug…so variety is key.

When it comes to fabric I work with hand woven silks. Handloom is exquisite, superior in quality and it is the slight inconsistency in the weave that contributes to its beauty.

I believe that the decisions designers make when it comes to fabric can revive our rich handloom traditions.

Who are your products targeted at?

It took time for me to find the right kind of clientele in a city like Bangalore. I like

@smashingmag How to transform a hoodie into a computer sleeve (Picture) -http://bit.ly/hn77wB #useful 10 POOL | 3.11 | #9

to work with people who have a love for art, and craft. Sometimes I get really specific requests, but as a mantra I take on projects I am passionate about and excite me.

What are the major lessons you have learned running a creative business?

It takes time to find your ideal clientele, that’s one thing I learned the hard way.

It was difficult initially not having a salary check coming in every month, and like most creative people it took me time to understand pricing, get organized, and maintain accounts. Like so many others out there I was shy, unwilling to hand out business cards, but PR, and learning to sell yourself is one thing we all must learn. I have a friend who told me, ‘If you believe in your product you must be able to stand

tall and convince anyone it’s worth taking a second look.’

What are your future plans?

Right now, though I am a very small design studio, with everything I do I seek to create some emotion in a consumer. I can’t remember the last time I shopped, and something made my heart skip a beat; we have become so accustomed to chain stores and mass production that we fail to see value in technique and tradition. I seek to collaborate with people to design residential spaces that evoke the emotions of the people who live there… it’s a home after all, not a house. I want to continue weaving stories by people, for people, that can be curated so people realize the value of hand made. Home furnishing projects excite me and I hope to do this on a larger

scale, by being given the freedom to do spaces in residential projects. Though there have been a lot of ups and downs, the creative freedom is what really keeps me going. Retail is not the best avenue at the moment but I’m sure I’m destined for a bright future.

What do you think we should watch out for in terms of a design phenomenon, technology or philosophy?

I think we should watch out for the many designers who are starting to make products that are young, original, and innovative.

Sadly there are very few platforms to promote this kind of art, but there are many people out there who are doing amazingly innovative and original work. writetokye@gmail.com

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Innovation

In an age of convenience anything that helps do away with cumbersome tools gets the thumbs up! Giha Woo, a young Korean product designer with a penchant for dreaming up items of unusual utility, recently came up with the ‘constrained ball’, a drawing aid that can be attached to a pen to draw straight lines without using a ruler. Why didn’t someone think of something like this earlier?

While normally a ball point pen rolls freely in accordance with the ball located at the tip of the pen, the constrained ball device prevents winding lines by helping to move the ball in one direction only. Using the installed measuring wheel indicated on the product, users can draw the exact desired line length in both a horizontal and vertical direction, as well as strokes in 45 degree angles.

“I would like to make it a real product in the near future,” says Giha in response to queries about where to find this wonder product. “I should think deeply about solving some problems so that it can be a perfect product.”

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A product of Hanyang University, where he acquired a BA in Industrial Design, Giha was a product designer with Innodesign in Korea for five years before quitting last year to work independently. He has won several awards for his innovative designs and participated in exhibitions in Korea and abroad, and it looks as if he means to continue this trend. “I plan to participate in various international design exhibitions to show my newest designs. I will also show them through the Internet continuously,” he assures.

Giha admits to a preference for the work of Japanese industrial designer Naoto Fukasawa. “We can see his designs through various brands, but his designs have their own identity. I think the product design identity is superior to the brand identity. I have never seen something like that before.

If I have an opportunity, I would like to work with him.”

humans and products - beyond the general relationship of function, form, material and usability,” he says. “So far, I have designed case by case. I would like to do designs that give out a more comprehensive message through a certain theme. For example, I want to design chairs which have a certain theme, but have a variety of expression,” he says.

It is not only the ‘constrained ball’ that Giha would like to see in the market – he is also expecting some of his other designs to be launched soon. “I always try to think about the special relationship between

His dream is to be designer who ‘breaks stereotypes about many kinds of objects’ and it certainly looks like he is heading that way. gihawoo@gmail.com

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Bookworm

Cover Stories Gunjan Ahlawat belongs to the confident breed of young Indian designers trying to make a mark in graphic design and discover a design language all their own.

In his short career, most of it comprising book cover design and freelance work for historic institutions like museums, he has won rich praise, which motivates him to aspire for higher achievements. Says Ali Sethi, author of ‘The Wish Maker’, “With a few colors, shapes and textures, Ahlawat was able to capture an atmosphere and a set of feelings that took me more than four hundred pages to try to evoke.”

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Book design is very close to Gunjan’s heart and he believes that its purpose is to respect, reflect and offer visual meaning to the author’s literary work. While he agrees it is the primary way to attract a reader to a book on a shelf, he admits that no book cover alone can clinch the deal. “People don’t stand in a bookstore, look at the cover of a book and say ‘I’m buying this book’. The book cover is what first attracts them, but their decision to buy a book is based on other factors as well.”

Gunjan believes that book design is integral to the experience of reading a book. “Good book design is a perfect harmony between all the visual and tactile elements of a book: cover image, typography, choice of paper, case material, end papers. All should work in harmony as one piece to deliver great writing to the reader,” he says.

While book design seems to be his forte, Gunjan also enjoys working for museums, art galleries, lifestyle and fashion

For book designer Gunjan Ahlawat a picture speaks as much as a thousand words! institutions, and the hospitality industry. He has done work for The City Palace, Jaipur; Gems and Jewellery Council of India; Onita, London; Harper Collins, Hachette, Westland, and Tranquebar.

The young man hails from a primarily agrarian family in Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh. He studied Graphic Design at National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, and worked at Dorling Kindersley before moving to Penguin Books India, where he remained till 2009. He was then awarded the Herron Scholarship and Fellowship to study a semester at Purdue University, USA, in the MFA program, with a focus on design thinking, innovation and leadership.

This was followed by the Governor’s International Post-Graduate Scholarship, 2010 to pursue Masters in Design in Graphic Design at The Glasgow School of Art with a focus on book design and typography, which he is presently pursuing. ahlawatgunjan@gmail.com

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Campus

Brief overview RMI Bangalore opened in June 2009. It offers international quality design education without having to leave India. Its core focus is developing industry-relevant skilled professionals, ready to enter the workplace.

Campus The Bangalore campus is a modern, stylish place to study, covering 30,000 sq feet.

It has truly state-of-the-art facilities, specified to international conventions. It’s conveniently located next to the Forum Mall in Koramangala.

Aims All programs follow modern curriculums of the highest standard, designed to nurture creative professionals and entrepreneurs. The unique emphasis on both academic theory and practical experience ensures that all the graduates are equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills that are demanded by employers worldwide.

Admission Process RMI has four admissions per year: January, April, June and October. Prospective students must attend an interview and sit for an entry examination.

The Company The college is run as a joint venture between Educomp and Raffles Education Corporation.

Educomp Solutions Limited is India’s largest education company, whilst Raffles is Asia Pacific’s leading education group. There are currently seven RMI colleges across India.

Standards Degrees are awarded by RCDC Sydney, one of Australia’s leading design schools. There are also rigourous checks to ensure standards are the same across all Raffles colleges around the world.

Students There are currently over 60 students, coming locally from Bangalore as well as a variety of other countries including Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Nepal and the UK. There is a good team spirit in the campus, with plenty of crossdepartment projects.

Events The campus recently hosted a talk by the worldrenowned typographer Peter Bilak as well as the Society Interiors Durian Design Competition. It is currently planning an end of year show for its fashion students, due to be held at a 5 star hotel in the city.

Courses RMI offers 3-year degrees and 2-year diplomas in: Fashion Design, Fashion Marketing and Management, Graphic Design, Visual Communication, Multimedia Design and Interior Design.

Applications are also welcomed from students who have completed a diploma elsewhere and who wish to further their studies to gain a degree. They will be assessed and given exemptions for some (or all) of the diploma modules. Another key benefit is the possibility of transferring to any of the other Raffles colleges Faculty The majority of RMI Bangalore’s staff are foreign, coming from countries such as the US, UK, Canada and Mexico. They bring with them many years of professional experience in their field. Most also have teaching experience in universities and colleges abroad.

Contact shobha@educompraffles.com Office: 080 43418888 Ms Shobha Rao 9686450766 www.educompraffles.com

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Events

Connecting Concepts A unique exhibition opens in Ahmedabad...

On February 8th Connecting Concepts opened on the NID campus in Ahmedabad.

This travelling exhibition from the Netherlands features a wide range of different objects and focuses on processes behind them. It is a conversation piece to support design networks. From every region it visits new contributions will be added.

designs have proven succesful on the market for more than a decade.

When you enter the exhibition you will not know what you see. Its looks are casual, yet carefully designed. But the exhibits, such as clothes hanging from the ceiling, a bicycle, maquettes, large TV-screens, a golden pig on a car tyre, don’t seem to have more in common than the space they share, surrounded as they are by a backdrop of cloudy skies.

Smartness guides the way to the second reason for the choice of exhibits. They all discern themselves through radical process sections, breaches with the usual. To leave the formation of coastal protection to the sea by strategic sand deposits is a step away from building dikes. Creating fashion by stitching and cutting fabric to make clothes behave in certain ways is just as clever. Moreover these two examples demonstrate that there are similarities between different worlds of design.

That is because the objects are meant to illustrate thoughts and methods of making, rather than just themselves. All examples feature some kind of radical step in favor of material reduction, a decrease in effort, a proposition of new opportunities, or straightforward playfulness.

Visitor information is threefold: text, images and objects. Because it is an exhibition for audiences from different countries, texts plus explanatory drawings are available in a separate booklet that all visitors get. It will vary according to location. All exhibits are displayed on a table with a printed tablecloth to provide background information.

The exhibits typically are not the most recent examples of good Dutch design. In addition their status of existence varies.

Some are early experiments, while other

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This choice is firstly due to the focus on the prerequistes of sustainability.

It is important to be aware of design considerations concerning material and effort: maximum value needs to be added to minimum resources in intelligent ways.

This opening up of boundaries brings us to the third part of the exhibition concept.

New exhibits will be added and Connecting Concepts will evolve. The second edition will open in Mumbai in mid May and will show about four examples from India. In July there will be another opening in Bangalore, from where the trip will continue to Beijing, where it will become a part in the Design Week at the end of September.

Premsela Foundation, the Dutch sector institute for design and fashion, initiated Connecting Concepts. Together with Brainport Development and The Netherlands Architecture Institute it commissioned Connecting Concepts, financed by the Dutch DFA program. ejhint@wxl.nl

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slug here

With his innovative Button Masala collection, Anuj Sharma changes the shape of fashion!

It’s so amazingly simple you wonder why no one has ever thought of it before! Just a few well placed buttons and a couple of straps with buttonholes can actually make or unmake an outfit. That’s all it takes to change the straight and structured into something flowing and flirty, and it doesn’t even need a much feted fashion designer to do that! What was Anuj Sharma thinking when he offered up his unique Button Collection into the hands of an audience who could well do away with the concept of designer once they had experimented with his versatile clothing?

That is the idea apparently. Anuj revels in creating designs that go beyond the ramp, wearable clothing that is as functional as it is eye catching. With the help of the one tailor that comprises his design studio, the Ahmedabad based Anuj has created a line of flexible clothing for both men and women that can be altered in look and appearance by popping a couple of buttons into corresponding buttonholes. As simple as that.

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“Most of my time in the recent past has gone in working further on Button Masala,” reveals the 36-year-old designer.

“It has been the center of my focus.”

What started out as a simple interplay between fabric, buttons and buttonholes has grown to include objects such as strategically placed bottle caps, ping pong balls and chai cups. Button Masala has also improved and evolved into the realm of craft, giving craftsmen the opportunity to be more flexible with traditional items like bags and cushion covers.

“During the Lakme Fashion Week where I showed Button Masala, I got feedback from models that it was difficult for them to even think of shifting a button here and there,” says Anuj. “They thought only a designer could change designs that easily. It took me by surprise and I felt that I needed to work further on the

line. And that meant not just improvising on the technique but giving a push and poke to people’s ability to be designers themselves.”

Anuj was recently invited by HCL Technologies to give a talk on the eve of the World Economic Forum in Davos. He spoke on Button Masala, unconventional methods and how the ‘constraint of having one tailor is an advantage’ and the audience lapped up what he was telling them. He was, in essence, freeing them from the tyrannies of the often unforgiving world of fashion.

His resume runs into several pages and his work experience is formidable, but Anuj has always been different from the rest of his ilk. After his post graduation in Apparel Design from National Institute of Design (NID), he was awarded the

Charles Wallace India Trust scholarship in 2002 for a Masters in High performance Sportswear Design from the University of Derby, UK. His achievements since then are varied, and include several awards for innovation and fashion entrepreneurship.

He has represented his country on several international platforms and was recently invited to judge an international fashion competition in Sweden. His main area of focus is craft development and performance wear, but he is also engaged in teaching fashion and understanding human behavior with the help of fashion.

There’s not much in the form of recognition that he hasn’t achieved and perhaps that is what allows him to boldly experiment with his designs in a way that no other designer would probably have the gumption to. It takes a lot of guts to hand over the designer’s reins to the customer

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and virtually lose creative control over a design. And yet Anuj seems to be enjoying the process.

His philosophy is simple. “I want that my work should make everybody feel capable of experiencing design not just by buying it but doing it. Design need not to be in a few hands...it needs to be in the minds of everybody and needs to be experienced by every hand. Simple thoughts and simple products will make it happen sooner,” he says.

“Design as I see it is a way of passing joy.

It’s experiencing every minute of life and exploring it. It’s sharing the stories of your experiments with everyone but truthfully.

Any lie or make up will kill the essence of sharing. I feel that nothing has been created by humans or invented.

A designer (or anybody for that matter)

can only see what is already there. A glass has an ability to be opaque, gold has an ability to be worthless, a feather can be worth millions. It’s our ability to see what already exists in the world, in the material, in the form, in the culture or in us that makes us what we are,” he adds.

What’s next for this unconventional designer? “A little less of fashion and more of passion,” he admits. “I am not very passionate about anything at the moment but I think I shall go on a search for it.

Nobody has control on how they will or can be remembered. I will wait and watch.”

Till then Anuj and his trusted ‘Manubhai the tailor’ will continue to change the shape of fashion in their minimalist but highly effective way. anujsharma.nid@gmail.com

@paavani Twitter timeline is like comedy circus. Everyday a new

theme is given to joke about!

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Social Design

Auroville based Upasana Integral Design focuses on socially responsible design through a range of projects, prominent among which is Tsunamika which has already captured the imagination and hearts of millions across the world The simply crafted dolls are little in size but what a large impact they have had, not only on the lives of those directly affected by the devastating tsunami of 2004, but on millions across the world. The initiative of Upasana Integral Design, an Auroville based design house committed to socially responsible design, Tsunamika has come a long way from her humble beginnings as a trauma counseling effort for fisherwomen in February 2005.

Almost six years ago nearly 500 fisherwomen from six tsunami-affected villages of coastal Tamil Nadu were taught to make the Tsunamila dolls (mama, sister and baby) out of raw material collected from industrial waste and leftover fabric from Upasana’s other projects. In four months, 23 training modules were held and from the women emerged 18 leaders who became future

trainers for the same program. In time, making Tsunamikas became a source of livelihood for 200 women.

Known as ‘living symbols’, the little dolls have helped transform the bitter memories of the tsunami into something creative, innocent, simple, sweet and empowering. The interesting thing is that the dolls are never bought or sold.

They are ‘shared’ – gifted unconditionally worldwide by Upasana, who acquires the dolls in bulk from the fisherwomen. The whole project runs on donations. Anyone can order a doll for free from a Tsunamika ambassador in their area (http://www. tsunamika.org).

The little dolls come in a number of variations – Tsunamika can be a hair clip, book mark, pencil decoration or paper clip; she can also be used

to embellish greeting cards and wall hangings. Undoubtedly Upasana’s most successful and fulfilling socially responsible communication design intervention, Tsunamika has had far reaching effects, socially, financially, environmentally and even spiritually.

From a design point of view, it has widened the perspective of how design can translate into social responsibility.

For Upasana, that underlines their very existence. Founded in 1997 as a design studio by Uma Haimavati, it initially focused on designing clothes using traditional Indian textiles. After the devastating tsunami struck the coastal areas of Southern India in 2004 Upasana ventured into the field of social development with a strong focus on application of design for social welfare.

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Since then Upasana has ventured into other projects in various parts of India.

One of these is Small Steps, an initiative to promote environmental awareness, specifically a responsible alternative to throw-away plastic bags. Upasana has designed a cloth bag, a ‘small step’ to address this problem, and it hopes to distribute these bags without cost throughout India. The main aim is to promote the use of re-usable bags, whether they have been designed by Upasana or not. For Upasana, Small Steps is not merely about bags; it’s the fact that solutions to problems lie in every little step we take each day. Upasana aims to make 10 million bags, this in turn creates the possibility of 1,000 jobs in the villages.

Another important initiative is the effort to rehabilitate the weavers of Varanasi, and create a sense of self worth among

them. Changing circumstances have robbed many of their livelihoods, and there are fewer takers for their beautifully crafted creations. Upasana’s project took off with an initial corporate gift order for 13,000 Banarasi silk scarves for a Danish company in 2006. By 2007 the project had matured into a full fledged process for Social Development of the weaving community in Varanasi.

Upasana is also involved in Kapas, a sustainable business collaborative striving to protect and promote the fragile cotton communities of Tamil Nadu. Over 2 lakh cotton farmers have committed suicide in the past decade due to crop failure, increased competition, and unfair business practices. From seed to sale, Kapas uses only the most ethical practices for the Earth and the cotton communities of rural India.

In an effort to restore the beauty and charm of the quiet Southern Indian coastal town of Tranquebar, Upasana has joined forces with the Bestseller Fund, INTACH (Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage), and Saint Joseph Development Trust. The project involves engaging the local population through training and marketing, enhancing their skills in craft, and bringing them into contact with visitors eager to buy their wares.

What sets Upasana apart is its emphasis on integral design, and its explorations of Socially Responsible Design stem from there. Upasana has also become a platform for students and volunteers from different parts of India and abroad to realize their full creative potential, both in design and in life. smallsteps@upasana.in

@dpavanm that would be TATA “@bitchwanti: I almost got killed by some gaavthi in a Sumo today.

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Point of View

The Art of Storyboarding: From Hitchcock to I-Phone

By Roopal Kewalya

BANG! A gunshot goes off. SCREECH; the letters appear in bold, black typo in a panel on the page as an object is dragged across the floor. Colourful images spread across the page, rising thought bubbles are seen as different characters speak and the action is welldefined. When I started writing this article on storyboarding in films, the first thing that came to my mind was the comic book that I used to read as a child.

In its rawest form, I think the history of a storyboard would have its roots right there, in a comic book.

In fact, official sources cite that Walt Disney’s 1933 short, ‘Three Little Pigs’ credited with having complete storyboards in its pre-production stage also began with comic book-like ‘story sketches’. Call it a sketch, a visual layout of events, a planner for pre production, a visual organizer or a series of illustrations; a storyboard is all that and much more.

Simply defined, it is the depiction of sequential narrative of events in a film.

However, what makes it different from a simple narrative is the fact that it takes into account a point of view: that of the camera. In this case, the camera is not just a viewer but also a participant in the action of the film. Therefore, a storyboard depicts camera angles, the distance of the camera from the objects/people in the frame, thus giving a fair idea of the lighting and sound requirements, of props needed, of camera movements, time lapse from the last scene to the next and the overall staging of a scene.

A storyboard is an essential guide to plan out sequences of films that are complicated and require some level of planning. Hence, it becomes an essential necessity for a cinematographer and the director as a visual reference even though the language of the camera might be changed at the final moment on location.

It is also a cue for actors as it defines the dialogues that go with every scene.

In fact, it also helps the set designers and the rest of the crew to understand the film as a whole. One of the first live action films to have a complete storyboard before it went on floors was ‘Gone with the Wind’. Seven artists and fifteen hundred sketches resulted in the design of two hundred sets of the film out of which ninety were erected.

potential problems which can be curtailed before going to shoot on location.

Storyboards since their inception have been used extensively in live action feature films, ad films, animation films and even in theater. In live action films, storyboards are largely used as a means of ‘blocking’ the shots of a film. Time is a key factor in shooting live action films and every minute costs. In that respect, a storyboard provides a clear idea to the cinematographer as to which scenes would be taken on a single axis or from a single camera angle. This is important because each scene requires a specific kind of lighting and changing camera positions would mean changing the entire set-up.

Just one look at the storyboard gives the expert an idea of how to shoot according to convenience rather than the order of the script. A storyboard also helps figure

The storyboard as a tool was also used by theater artists especially the Russian dramatist Stanislavsky for his production ‘The Seagull’ as early as 1898. German playwright and theatre director Bertolt Brecht also used storyboards for his plays.

A minute in live action is sixty seconds in animation film-making and as we are all well aware, every second counts in an animation film. A technique that is based on the workings of drawing a frame per second definitely requires immense planning. As such, storyboarding the entire film helps in pointing out scenes that might not be required at all and hence can be eliminated from the final film. It further helps in the timing of each action and each scene in the film. This becomes very crucial because the art of animation is largely the art of perfect timing. In fact, in animation the script is largely replaced by a storyboard.

Apart from this, a storyboard can be employed for pitching projects so that the producer understands where and how his/ her money would be utilized. It is used for concept art, for understanding the basic flow of events and as a representation of the final product, i.e., the film itself.

Had it not been for the storyboard, an expensive period film like ‘Gone with the Wind’ would have had disastrous financial consequences.

@NID_India As a part of NID’s Golden Jubilee Celebrations, Typography Day 2011 (2 day international seminar on typography &... http://fb.me/QkSd3fso 26 POOL | 3.11 | #9

From the longest time, special artists have been hired to create magical storyboards that make the film come alive on paper.

While a lot of professionals give emphasis to ‘good-looking’ storyboards, many others maintain that even stick figures work. In fact, many filmmakers simply use photographs on location or sourced pictures to create what they have in their mind. If the idea is simply to understand the work flow of the film in hand then stick figures or photographs not just save time but also give a clear picture.

On the other hand, there have been cases where storyboards have been used as a promotional tool. Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘North

by Northwest’ is a famous example. On the behest of the publicity department, Hitchcock hired an artist to create scenes from the film after it was shot in order to use them for the film’s promotion.

Today, storyboarding has come a long way. Any search engine provides hundreds of results on software for storyboarding. From storyboarding for dummies to storyboards for professionals, technology has enhanced the numerous ways one can now make a storyboard.

In fact, a storyboard can now be made on your I-phone as a result of a new application, not surprisingly called ‘Hitchcock.’ It allows you to take pictures on your phone, add the basic camera movements like track, pan, zoom and allows for a playback feature so you can even time your shots to perfection. Now Hitchcock would definitely approve of that one! Films or the business of motion pictures has always grown hand-in-hand with technology. Undoubtedly then, each process of filmmaking would also grow or

fade out with technology. Storyboarding is also a part of that cycle.

One of the stalwarts of Indian cinema, Satyajit Ray extensively used storyboarding as a technique for visualizing his film. He once famously said, “We do not admire a painting for its fidelity to the model.” Although he said it with respect to a film closely corroborating the text that it had been taken from, these words can very well be applied to the role of a storyboard in the filming process. A storyboard is only the first step towards a visualization of the mind’s eye. It is a preparation for the final creation, the film itself and its relevance in today’s time remains according to the nature of the film and the mind behind it. roopalkewalya@gmail.com

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Young Talent

Keep it

simple

Nameeta Sohoni is a graduate from Sir J. J. Institute of Applied Arts, Mumbai, and has a Masters in Branding and Communication Design from UCCA, Surrey in the UK. She worked with some leading brand consultancies before setting up Mumbai-based Bayo Design, which offers professional services for Branding, Packaging and Communication Design related projects.

She believes that in a world that thrives on change, novelty and experiment, it is crucial that one is clearly seen for who they are and what they do. Her mantra is to keep visual communication simple.

Here she traces her journey to independence…

What does it mean to go independent and start off on your own? To me it is a journey which has taught me how to survive in the best possible way I know. It is what keeps enhancing my learning curve with every decision I make. This is a small account of my journey and experiences as an independent communication designer, trying to run my own set up and hopefully carve a niche for myself as I go along.

Laying out the foundation: What is the plan?

I had put in my papers and I had a month’s notice to serve before my first day as an independent design professional. I desperately wanted something to look forward to on my first day of going solo. Nothingness intimidates me; I have this innate need to be in a constant state of flux. Hence, I jumpstarted the process of naming myself, recreating my portfolio along with a profile of services I would be offering

and scoured for contacts past and new, anything that would help me get the word out. Thus, Bayo was born.

What has worked so far?

Word of mouth: I never realized the power of word of mouth until I got out and started ‘talking’. I started with friends and acquaintances that were instrumental in spreading the word and creating a little buzz about Bayo. This fortunately worked out to be a great initial step.

Networking: Meeting people personally

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opened up doors for me. Attending professional forums and workshops exposed me to a larger category of people. It taught me that even though work may or may not get generated, what is important is establishing the fact that you exist, and making connections.

Online Presence: The Internet really shrinks our world. Professional networking sites like LinkedIn helped me connect with industry professionals I probably would not have been able to otherwise. Portfolio showcasing websites like Coroflot and Behance helped me showcase my work and profile, another great option as I did

not have the budget to get a website up at that time.

Social Media: Social media is a very powerful tool if used well. I am still learning the ropes of using Facebook, Twitter, Wordpress, etc. to my advantage.

Website: Now, my website www. bayodesign.com has allowed me my ‘own virtual space’ which I can own. This is what showcases my personality, quality and approach to work.

Direct Approach: Last but not the least, what also worked great for me was the Direct Approach. If I spotted something that had the potential for a job

I approached it head on. It has taught me how to be brave.

The past year has been an educational journey for me, mostly in terms of personal and professional growth. It has taught me various means of exploring ‘New Business’ opportunities and making connections, which is always the concern especially for start ups and new independent professionals. It is this search for new things that fuels Bayo Design to keep at it and never lose hope. nsohani@gmail.com

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RIGHT CLICK

A self taught photographer, Smruti Swarup Puhan’s portfolio is a mÊlange of starkly beautiful landscapes and striking faces

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Maestros It’s easy to see that his earliest inspiration came from National Geographic. His pictures are as arresting as the images in that venerable magazine; each one captured for posterity with a skill that belies his lack of professional training. And while many would say that photography can’t really be taught, Smruti Swarup Puhan admits that there is an amazing amount of hard work behind what seems like an effortless shot.

“I have worked really hard to learn and achieve the kind of shots I have got till date,” he says. “Observing minute details, finding something interesting and out of the ordinary has changed the way I look at things and also changed me as a person. I believe in conceptual composition, which is

an individual’s unique view point. A lot of people chase what other people are doing.

To a certain extent it’s good to learn but it’s imitating in the form of learning. If you keep experimenting and develop your skills, and make photographs with all the experiences you have had, that will really set you apart as a photographer.”

He’s come a long way since he began studying photographs to see what made them special. Today anything inspires him - an illustration, a dream, a comic, good food, music, a good conversation, daily activities and people around him. “Pictures can be made anywhere,” he says. “I respect people who can take really good photographs of friends and family. That is

the greatest challenge. I’ll consider myself a good photographer the day I take great pictures of my parents.”

And yet he would probably admit that some of his best images have been taken on his travels across the country. “I have traveled extensively across India and focus on capturing the real essence of the places I visit through my photos. My best photographs have been of people and culture; it is the people who make a place and culture is its essence and I love to capture that wherever I go,” says the young man. “What I am looking forward to is to bring out the best Odisha (Orissa) has to offer – its people and culture. I want people to see Odisha beyond the floods and

@TomokoHosaka Are the Japanese the only people who use umbrellas in the snow? www.poolmagazine.in 31

cyclones.” And preferably with his dream camera - LEICA M9 ‘Titanium’.

Meanwhile he is putting his skills to good use. Born in Rourkela, Odisha, Smruti graduated in Communication Design from Symbiosis Institute of Design, Pune, specializing in Film and Video. “I started freelancing and assisting a celebrity fashion photographer when I was in my second year of college in 2007. I also started working on self initiated photo stories.”

Now based in Mumbai, Smruti’s work includes portfolio shoots and shots for travel magazines. “Recently I worked for Dharma Production’s ‘We Are Family’.

I also assisted a celebrity fashion photographer on shoots for magazines like Femina, Verve and Filmfare,” he adds.

“Richard Avedon is my icon - the fashion photography he did in the 1950s is simply unmatchable! He has created timeless images, every frame speaks for itself and shows how brilliantly one can use lines and how fluid a form can be,” he enthuses.

Fortunately his philosophy doesn’t include imitating someone else’s style. From the time he volunteered as a photographer for a college festival, switching from auto to manual mode with ease, to four years down the line, he has developed his own distinctive approach. “Photography is a

feeling that comes from within, it’s about a moment you want to freeze and cherish forever! Some times you just put your heart and soul into making a photograph and everything else falls into place.”

The future is quite focused. “I have a few photo stories lined up and am looking for sponsors,” says Smruti. “I think one should be receptive, and look out for opportunities and grab each that comes your way. Every event will teach you something unique and enrich you as a person. I just want to enjoy photography, to keep exploring and make some money in the process.” All it takes is the right click at the right time. smoothie.sp@gmail.com

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